Topic(s): Family, Bible Authority

Bob Prichard

Many love their pets, sometimes even more than they love people. Pets provide companionship, love, and comfort to multiplied millions. Some might think from Solomon’s words in Ecclesiastes that there is nothing beyond this life for man or beast. “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?” (Ecclesiastes 3:19-21). Solomon was not describing heaven, though, but was saying that when we look at death from a strictly “under the sun,” or human standpoint, we cannot tell what happens to man or beast when they die. But the Bible tells us there is more beyond this life!

Heaven is the home that Christians have longed for through the ages. The most complete description of heaven is found in the book of Revelation, especially its last two chapters. There, the apostle John tells us, “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4). It will be a beautiful place, in the presence of the Lord. “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof” (Revelation 21:23). It is the place we all will want to spend eternity.

Several animals are mentioned in the book of Revelation. Chapter 4 describes a heavenly worship scene with four living creatures with characteristics of a lion, a calf, a man, and a flying eagle. Christ is portrayed in chapter 5 as the Lamb, and chapter 19 depicts Him riding on a white horse, leading the armies of heaven. We must remember, however, that the description of heaven in the book of Revelation is written in very symbolic language, and it may be we are not meant to take any of these animals literally. In describing the protection of the heavenly city, which never closes its gate and needs no wall, John tells us that outside the gate “are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie” (Revelation 22:15). The dogs mentioned here are not canines, but those who disobey God. Sometimes disobedient people were called dogs in passages such as Deuteronomy 23:18, which refers to male prostitutes as dogs, or Philippians 3:2-3, where Paul called the Judaizing teachers dogs, because they tried to bind circumcision on other Christians.

Whether we will have our pets in heaven is something we cannot know for certain, because the Bible just has not revealed that to us. We do know, however, that God will provide everything we need in heaven to be happy. That may include our pets, or it may not. In our fallible human wisdom, we may never understand. We must trust God, knowing that whatever He provides will be sufficient, and that the creation marred by sin and death will be restored to beauty and wholeness by His love.